Field
The present disclosure relates generally to electrosurgery and electrosurgical systems and apparatuses, and more particularly, to an electrosurgical apparatus including an automatic applicator identifier used to communicate between the applicator and a generator unit, automatically presetting various values.
Description of the Related Art
High frequency electrical energy has been widely used in surgery. Tissue is cut and bodily fluids are coagulated using electrosurgical energy.
Electrosurgical instruments generally comprise “monopolar” devices or “bipolar” devices. Monopolar devices comprise an active electrode on the electrosurgical instrument with a return electrode attached to the patient. In monopolar electrosurgery, the electrosurgical energy flows through the active electrode on the instrument through the patient's body to the return electrode. Such monopolar devices are effective in surgical procedures where cutting and coagulation of tissue are required and where stray electrical currents do not pose a substantial risk to the patient.
Bipolar devices comprise an active electrode and a return electrode on the surgical instrument. In a bipolar electrosurgical device, electrosurgical energy flows through the active electrode to the tissue of a patient through a short distance through the tissue to the return electrode. The electrosurgical effects are substantially localized to a small area of tissue that is disposed between the two electrodes on the surgical instrument. Bipolar electrosurgical devices have been found to be useful with surgical procedures where stray electrical currents may pose a hazard to the patient or where other procedural concerns require close proximity of the active and return electrodes. Surgical operations involving bipolar electrosurgery often require methods and procedures that differ substantially from the methods and procedures involving monopolar electrosurgery.
Gas plasma is an ionized gas capable of conducting electrical energy. Plasmas are used in surgical devices to conduct electrosurgical energy to a patient. The plasma conducts the energy by providing a pathway of relatively low electrical resistance. The electrosurgical energy will follow through the plasma to cut, coagulate, desiccate, or fulgurate blood or tissue of the patient. There is no physical contact required between an electrode and the tissue treated.
Electrosurgical systems that do not incorporate a source of regulated gas can ionize the ambient air between the active electrode and the patient. The plasma that is thereby created will conduct the electrosurgical energy to the patient, although the plasma arc will typically appear more spatially dispersed compared with systems that have a regulated flow of ionizable gas.
Atmospheric pressure discharge cold plasma applicators have found use in a variety of applications including surface sterilization, hemostasis, and ablation of tumors. In the latter example, the process can be relatively slow, generate large volumes of noxious smoke with vaporized and charred tissue, and may cause collateral damage to surrounding healthy tissue when high power electrosurgical energy is used. Precision accuracy can also be a problem, due to the width of the plasma beam. Often, a simple surgical knife is used to excise the tissue in question, followed by the use of a cold plasma applicator for cauterization, sterilization, and hemostasis.
Medical devices used in the afore-mentioned electrosurgery and plasma-beam surgery typically consist of a generator unit and an attached hand piece or applicator. A variety of different applicators may be available for a given generator unit, some of which are general purpose, and others designed for a specific task. Those designed for a specific task may have limitations with regard to maximum power and/or gas flow rate, as in the case of plasma-beam applicators. Also, there may be changes in the characteristics of the applicator with prolonged use, affecting its safety and effectiveness. Finally, some applicators that are disposable cannot be re-sterilized and its use must be limited to a single procedure.
Rather than rely on the operators' correct presetting of the generator unit for a specific applicator type, a need exists for an automatic applicator identifier to communicate between the applicator and the generator unit, automatically presetting various values.